Nike Hits Its Stride

The footwear giant's stock, which jumped on strong fiscal second-quarter results, can run higher.

Though divestitures hurt Nike's fiscal second-quarter profit, investors are still cheering the footwear maker's results—and with good reason.

After Thursday's close, Nike (ticker: NKE) reported earnings of $384 million, down from $469 million a year earlier, as the company took a $137 million hit related to its sale of its Umbro and Cole Haan brands. However, on a per-share basis, earnings from continuing operations rose to $1.14 from $1.03. Revenue from continuing operations grew 7.4% to $5.96 billion. Analysts...